Never-Ending
by Hiddles007
Summary: Who knew working in a bookstore could lead to such excitement? A chance meeting will change a mortal woman's life forever. She knows she shouldn't help a wanted criminal, but is unable to refuse the God of Mischief.
1. Chapter 1

Chapter one:

"Fuck," she exclaimed, as she plopped down onto the stool behind the counter. For working in a used bookstore, some days were extremely hard to deal with, today being one of them. She watched with narrow eyes as her most recent problem customer walked out of view of the front window, and narrowly avoided the temptation to stick her tongue out at him. A headache was pounding at the back of her head, and she placed her throbbing forehead against the cool wood of the counter. She was happy for once that the shop wasn't busy, as she was sure that the sound of the dinging bell would be her undoing. She was used to her regulars, the people that would come in and exchange books for new ones, with a small fee attached of course, and of course the random people that would wander in off the street, seeing this quaint little shop. But the guy who had just left, he was a real piece of work…acting superior and ordering her around, like she would put up with that. He claimed to be from some government agency, but refused to show her any sort of identification to validate his claim.

He wouldn't be the first show boater to come in and demand things from her family. The Andersen family was once well known in the trade of expensive and rare books, as her grandmother, and subsequently her mother, were traders and appraisers of ancient books and artifacts, something fascinating that drew the women of her family together. She shook herself, as if trying to shake off her unease from her visitor. She didn't know what it was about him, but she didn't like him, whatsoever. It wasn't just his cocky attitude, nor just his bald head and very strange eye-patch. It was something more. As soon as he stepped into her store she had the reaction of wanting to throw him out. Apparently her gut reaction was right, as he turned out to be a pompous ass. She pulled her dark hair out of its pony tail as she grinned mischievously. The government man had asked her if she was in the possession of an ancient Nordic book, one that would probably be worth a pretty penny. She stood from her seat and moved to the door, flipping the open sign to read closed, before making her way to the back of the store, and stealing up a set of stairs.

The shop had been in her family for generations, her great grandfather opening it up when he first moved to Canada, emigrating from Norway. They settled in a small town outside of Toronto, and had been there ever since. With her grandmother's and mother's chosen professions, they needed a place to store their most precious books that they had collected over the years, or at least made copies of. Her mother was an expert in illuminating manuscripts, and copying them. It would have been considered forgery if she had tried to sell them and pass them off as the original, but her mother never had, she just kept these copies for her own enjoyment of texts she couldn't keep. The girl pushed thoughts of her mother out of her mind as she approached a door. It looked like a normal wooden door, fitting with the décor of the shop, but she knew differently. She pressed her thumb over the doorknob, noticing the subtle beep sound it made, which most people would miss. If the fingers on the doorknob weren't registered, the cops would be called, all without the thief's knowledge, while of course, the door would remained locked. However, as her fingerprints were registered and allowed, the door unlocked and she eagerly opened it. The smell of old books wafted to her nose. While the same sort of smell existed downstairs, with the mass rows of used books that were sold there, this smell was different. To her this smell promised mystery and intrigue, daring her to pursue the texts within the room, which she had done on numerous occasions. She walked right to one glass case, where the book she was looking for was located. She grinned to herself as she opened the doors. She had always been slightly afraid of touching these ancient books, but her mother had taught her the correct way to do so, so that they would not come apart or be damaged. Most of the books in this room were palimpsests, and the truly ancient texts had to be gleaned from beneath the writing over top, but not this one.

Someone had decided that this particular text was important enough to warrant keeping, in times when paper was scarce and a hot commodity. The cover of the book was nothing special, just looked like leather, some sort of animal hide. This book was nameless, no inscription on either the cover or the inner pages revealed who wrote it, or to what purpose. This was by far her favourite book in the collection, for multiple reasons, but right now it was her favourite because it was what that government guy wanted, something he would never have, as long as she had something to say about it. She reached out a finger to stroke the leather, the vellum was alright to touch, as it craved the oils from human fingers, to keep it shining. She jumped out of her skin as a sound disrupted the silence of the room. She pressed a hand to her heart as she reached into her back pocket with the other one, retrieving her cell phone, which was the source of the interrupting noise. She sighed as she looked at the number and answered it begrudgingly.

"Arndis!" the familiar voice squealed. "Thank god you picked up!" It was her cousin, Beth, and she could already guess what this phone call was about.

Arndis smiled to herself, loving the fact that she knew her cousin so well, and because of that knowledge, she knew that this would not be a short conversation. She exchanged small talk with her cousin while she locked up the safe room, and headed back downstairs, and plopped herself into a comfortable chair by the window.

"So you have to come tonight!" Beth was exclaiming. She had been trying to convince Arndis to come to some stupid party for weeks now. The love of Beth's life, who also didn't know she existed, was going to be there, and Beth was invited, sending her mind into fairy-tale land where they would meet and he would fall madly in love with her, like Cinderella or something. Arndis barely held in a snort. Arndis opened her mouth to refuse but her cousin stopped her by saying. "Come on, you haven't been out at all since—"

Arndis stopped her cousin with an angry, "Don't", her voice almost a growl. She knew what her cousin was referring to, but had no desire to think about that at this moment.

"All you do is go to school and then sit in that bookstore. It's not healthy. Mom has been worried about you and is about to stage an intervention. Come with me tonight, if only to avoid that from happening."

Despite herself, Arndis found herself grinning. She could only imagine her aunt Tessa on the rampage. She had fortunately stayed under the radar for a long while, but apparently that grace period was up. Beth, impervious to Arndis' thoughts, continued on. "And you are graduating University this year. This is really your last chance to party it up, while being still socially acceptable." Arndis sighed heavily, but she knew that she would consent. Not only because of her aunt, but because she loved her cousin dearly, like a sister, and would sacrifice her own happiness for an evening to help her fairy-tale unfold…or to help pick up the pieces when it shattered, like it most likely will.

"Fine, Beth. When should I come over?"

Arndis sighed as she looked at herself in the mirror. Her face looked washed out and sad, but there was nothing she could do about it. She'd looked that way for over two years, ever since…but no, she wouldn't think about that, not if she expected herself to go to a party tonight. She had curled her hair slightly, letting it fall down around her face, in the hopes of distracting anyone who looked at her from the sadness there. Or to at least blend in more. She was wearing jeans, as she refused to wear a miniskirt like her cousin surely would be. She was 22, after all, and she felt that her time for miniskirts and reckless behaviour were behind her, stuck firmly in her memories from first year university. She had opted for a nicer top, one that Beth had bought her, as it was something that she never wore, something entirely different from her usual wardrobe. The deep green top rode low in the chest, exposing her ample cleavage, something that she usually didn't do. Arndis smiled despite herself, thinking that she looked presentable at least, which was more than she usually did in her hoodies. Arndis looked at the time and swore. She ran about her bachelor apartment and threw on some leather boots and her coat and dashed out the door into the cold.

As she walked quickly, she wrapped her scarf more securely around her neck, tucking it into her coat as she walked. Beth was going to kill her. She was going to be late to Beth's and then they would be late to the party. Beth was concerned that if she was late her crush, Mark, will have already found someone else to keep his attention. And knowing Mark, that threat was actually plausible. He was the stereotypical "hottie", a football star, muscular, tall, blonde hair, blue eyes. He wasn't Arndis' type though, although she could appreciate what the other girls saw in him. She knew she would find him incredibly dull, and he would probably find her the same. Never into sports, more apt to bury her nose in a book, Arndis figured that they would have nothing to talk about…and for a split second she imagined the horrific idea if Beth and Mark got married, and she'd have to play nice and talk to him at family gatherings…She shook off her thought, wondering when she had started fantasizing like Beth. Arndis lifted her hands to her mouth and blew some hot air over them. It was late fall, and she should have worn her gloves, but she hadn't remembered in her hurry to leave, something she was sorely regretting now. Arndis frowned as she heard footsteps behind her, quietly. She felt the hair on the back of her neck stand up, and knew something was wrong. She hurried her pace, not looking back, as she didn't want whoever was behind her to realise that she knew of their existence. She heard voices a head of her and she almost sprinted towards the sound, not caring who it was, just thinking that she might be safer amongst other people. She slowed her steps as she approached a group of boys. They had open beers in their hands and were wobbling while they were walking. She recognized the symbol on one of the boy's sweaters, identifying him as a member of a fraternity from her university. She didn't know which one, however, as the Greek system seemed pointless and wasteful to her. Beth had rushed a sorority once, and then quit halfway through when she realised how that life didn't suit her.

Arndis stopped walking as one of the frat boys whistled at her, drawing the attention of the other boys to her. Arndis swallowed hard, hoping that they would just continue on their way. The one who whistled staggered over to her, while he was drunk, the size of his shoulders and a certain look in his eye made cool fingers of fear crawl up Arndis' back. "My, aren't you pretty?" he said, looming over her. She heard his friends snicker behind him, and she swallowed again. She plastered a smile onto her face and then tried side stepping him. He followed her movement, blocking her way. She looked behind her, feeling bile rise to her throat as she saw another man in a matching sweater walking towards her from the other side, perhaps he was the one that had been following her before. Arndis clenched her hands into fists at her sides, and tried her best to recall her self-defence training she had received in high school, which seemed like a million years ago. She took deep breaths, feeling the need to hyperventilate coming upon her, and she knew that would help no one. The guy in front of her was leaning down into her face, close enough that she could smell the booze on his breath. "A pretty girl like you, shouldn't be walking alone…" he said, and Arndis dug her nails into her palms as he reached out and ran his hand over the length of her hair.

Arndis clenched her teeth and in the strongest voice she could muster, said, "Don't fucking touch me."

This was apparently hilarious, as all the boys started laughing, some a lot harder than others. The man in front of her chuckled and as if to show her that her words meant nothing to him, reached out and grabbed her breast, through her coat. Arndis didn't know what happened next, she didn't even remember thinking it through, but the man was crouched over, cupping his testicles, and her knee throbbed slightly, as if it had just bumped into something. "Fucking cunt!" the man exclaimed and she could see the anger in his eyes. Arndis swallowed as the three other boys turned in her direction, looking angry too, as if personally affronted by her attack on their buddy. She knew she had to get out of there, and as soon as possible. She turned and started to run, as fast as her legs would carry her. She cursed herself for wearing boots with high heels on them, as they severely slowed her down. She let out a sob of defeat as she felt a hand wrap around her upper arm, spinning her around. Unsurprisingly, it was one of the frat boys. His hair looked windswept and she recognized him as the one that had startled her in the first place. He was grinning, as if this was the best accomplishment he had ever worked towards. His hand pressed roughly into her arm and she fought back a whimper, not wanting to show him how much it hurt. Her mind raced as she tried to figure out a way out. She tried struggling against his grip, but it was tight. She felt tears leak out of her eyes as the other four guys approached. Another one grabbed her other arm, preventing her from struggling, and turned her to face the man she had injured. Fear rose in her throat, tasting like iron in her mouth, causing her body to shake, as she knew what was going to happen. She knew she was outnumbered and couldn't fight them all. She could take one, she supposed, but not five. The injured man walked forward and slowly undid the belt of her coat, sliding it through the buckle with a laugh. Arndis shivered against the chill as the cool fall air hit against her chest. Just before the man grabbed her shirt, a voice interceded.

"Unhand the woman." The voice sent a shiver up Arndis' back, which had nothing to do with the cold. She couldn't see the speaker, as he was situated behind her, but she desperately wanted to. His voice was deep and commanding, with what sounded a bit like a British accent. Even in this situation, the sound of the man's voice had desire shooting to her stomach. This desire was quelled slightly when the men holding her laughed. "You heard me, mortals. Unhand the woman," the voice said again, a little anger leaking into it.

Arndis felt relief flow through her as the man standing in front of her turned towards the newcomer. She struggled against the hands restraining her. She was turned around by those holding her and she was slightly shocked at the sight in front of her. The man who was trying to rescue her looked slight. His shoulders were not as broad as the man who was now facing him down. It was not his size that shocked her, but his garb. He was wearing nothing on his feet, his bare toes touching the freezing pavement. His arms were exposed in the light almost tunic-like shirt he wore, the same deep green colour as her own. She looked down at the pants he wore and despite her situation, fought a blush. His pants were skin tight, almost like the leggings she wore on occasion, which left little to the imagination. His hair was past his shoulders, and raven black, messily strewn about as if he had just been through a wind storm.

The blonde man approached him and swung a fist towards the raven-haired man. He slighter man evaded it easily, and placed a kick to the other man's stomach, sending him reeling. Arndis felt another chill take over her body as she watched the raven-haired man grin, but this was a grin without humor, his lips stretching over his face showed enjoyment of the fight. Yet, somehow, that grin was enough to turn her legs to jelly, and if not for the men holding her arms, she would have fallen to her knees. The other man, who had been little more than a bystander up to this point, rushed at the raven-haired man and was met with the same fate as his friend. Arndis staggered backwards as her arms were let free of their vices. The two men previously restraining her walked towards the threatening man, whose green eyes seemed to glow in the dark night, as if lighting up at the idea of a challenge. Despite her desire to stay and watch how this ended, the rational side of her brain took over and forced her jelly-like legs to run, and run away, with shouts of pain and dismay in her wake.


	2. Chapter 2

Authors note: Hey guys! This story is my first post to this site. After months of getting inspired, I decided to give it a go! Thanks for all the favourites and don't be afraid to review, constructive criticism is much appreciated!

xo

Arndis stopped and sat down by the fountain in the town square. The space was empty at this time of night. Her heart was racing, and her thighs were aching from running. She had probably run for twenty minutes straight, as fast as she could, and she wasn't used to this type of physical exertion at all. Her heart was hammering in her chest, and her mind latched onto the faces of the men she had met tonight, both her attackers and her savior. Her mind remained on her savior more than she thought necessary. His dark green eyes seemed to leer into her soul, as if he knew all her secrets. His cheekbones were well defined and looked as though one could cut themselves if they were touched. His lips were pale pink, and beautiful, even when pulled over his white teeth in an unsettling grin.

"Ahh, there you are." The voice seemed to appear out of nowhere, and Arndis tensed, although she recognized the voice now. She moved her eyes slowly, again taking in his bare feet as her gaze moved up towards his now smirking face. Her stomach rolled at the sight of the blood on his cheek, seemingly not his own, as it wasn't flowing freely. Another part of her recognized how the look of the warrior on him almost heightened his beauty. She felt a shiver flow through her, and couldn't name the cause. He looked vaguely familiar to her now, that she wasn't distracted by other things, but she couldn't place him. "I thought you might have run off to the mortal guards by now."

_Mortal Guards?_ "The police?" she questioned, not understanding his words. He cocked his head as he looked at her. His gaze was heavy upon her and scrutinizing. She could almost feel him assessing her. He grinned again, but this time it made her feel uneasy. She continued on, he voice speaking without her mind being totally present. "I just stopped to rest…I'm going to phone them."

His eyes narrowed as she took the phone out from her pocket. He watched the device as if it were a weapon. She looked at her screen, unsurprised when there were five missed calls from Beth, and she could only imagine how many of the 10 text messages were from her cousin. She cringed but figured she had an amazing excuse for being late. "Put that down." The man said, his voice low and threatening. Arndis almost dropped the phone from her hands as she looked up at him. His eyes were angry and threatening, and his lips turned down into an intense frown. She complied and put the phone down on the bench beside her, staring numbly at the man in front of her, not sure what was going to happen.

They stayed there in silence for what seemed like an eternity. Until she finally asked, "Did you kill them?"

The man in front of her raised a dark eyebrow, a smirk coming to his face again. "Would you like it if I had?"

Arndis opened her mouth to reply the negative, but she paused. They were lowly human beings, and monsters, going to attack a young girl. She may have gotten away because of this man's help, but were other girls so lucky? She knew that there were many girls raped on campus, and she wondered if those men were responsible for any of them. She didn't answer his question directly, instead she said, "They would have deserved it."

His eyebrows shot up and he looked at her again, curiously. He was apparently surprised by the answer. She knew most girls would have said not to kill them, especially since they didn't get anywhere with her, but she was never quite so forgiving. "Indeed. However, for your sake I left them alive. It would be hard to explain five dead bodies in a mortal establishment of this size, and with your hair all over the place, questions were sure to be asked.

Arndis nodded, "Thank you." Her voice was quiet, but rang with sincerity and gratitude. He looked surprised again, but she couldn't understand why. He had just saved her life, and looked out for her wellbeing.

"What is your name mortal?"

"Why do you call people that? Mortal? Are you a vampire or something?"

He grinned at this, but revealed nothing, "I asked your name."

This irked her and she could feel annoyance start to seethe through her. But she clamped down on it, reminding herself that this was fair, she owed him one and he didn't have to be kind. "Arndis."

His eyebrows raised in surprise again, but this reaction wasn't new. Almost everyone had this reaction. She was given an old Nordic name, something that pleased both her parents and their respective passions. "A beautiful name," he said, his deep dark voice, going a note deeper, making her stomach burn, "Unusual for mortals."

"What's yours?"

He laughed, but something darkened his eyes. It seemed almost like disappointment. Arndis gasped loudly, drawing his eyes back to her. "It's you!" she exclaimed, jumping to her feet and slowly backing away, fear racing through her body for the first time in his presence. "You were in New York with those metal monster thingies…"

"The Chitauri, and yes that was me."

She felt the breath woosh out of her lungs at his statement, not that it was unexpected. She was good with faces, she never forgot a face. She knew this man from the media coverage that was surrounding that event, and the damage that was caused. She shivered and looked at him. He had this weird grin on his face, and a strange gleam in his eyes, and she wondered if he was thinking of the same place she was, in a different light. He was some sort of alien. An alien had saved her. An apparently evil alien. "What are you doing here? They said you were gone, for good!"

He laughed, reminding her of an evil villain in a Disney movie. It was dark and delicious, but something cynical and malicious laid under it. "If it were up to me, I wouldn't be. No more questions mortal, I need information." He sat down on the bench she had vacated and patted the spot beside him. His eyes were hard and guarded, but she still felt drawn to him, inexplicably. But she fought against it, crossing her arms in front of her chest. His eyes narrowed dangerously and she unwillingly was reminded of the video footage she had seen of him getting people to kneel for him in front of the gala building, and what happened to those who refused. She swallowed but went to sit beside him, not wanting to test fate twice in one night. She didn't want to survive the attack just to be exterminated by her saviour. She sat beside him, but far enough away so she didn't feel his body heat, and turned her eyes towards him, meeting his deep green eyes, not willing to back down completely. Her inner voice told her to run away from this monster, but another part of her wanted to cuddle up against him and reminded her that he had saved her life, and monsters didn't risk their lives for strange "mortal" girls. "Are they looking for me?" Loki asked, Arndis remembered his name being plastered across the TV along with his picture. Even looking at him through the television screen she felt connected to him, and attracted. She mentally shook herself.

"I imagine so. Not at the moment, I suppose, as they still think you're…wherever the hell you are from…But if they find out that you're on Earth again, well I'd imagine they'd look for you."

He sighed and looked at her sadly. "That's a shame then, Arndis. As I can't have you remembering that you met me. They have ways to get information out of you, so you can't be aware of anything."

Arndis started to stand from the bench, to start to flee, but his hand clamped down on her arm, effectively stopping her movement. "Please…I won't tell anyone I swear."

He smiled sadly, "I believe you, Arndis. And I wish I could leave it at that." Arndis shivered as he ran his hand down her cheek, making her pulse jump. She gasped a second before he touched her forehead. An odd green light seemed to appear around his fingers before they touched her temples. A slight pain started in her mind, under his touch, and she tried to pull away, but he held her steadfastly. "Goodnight, Arndis. I'll talk to you soon," he said, before she blacked out.


	3. Chapter 3

Hellooo. next chapter! Loki gets some competition, but not really, as who could ever beat that man?

xoxoxo

* * *

Chapter 3

Arndis sat up in a panic. Her heart was beating erratically in her chest, as she looked around. She felt herself start to relax as she took in the familiar sights of her bachelor apartment. She looked down at where she was sitting, on her bed. Had she fallen asleep? She wracked her brain thinking, and the last thing she remembered was putting on her green shirt, and then…nothing really. She remembered flashes of things, but she was pretty sure that was just a dream, right? She rolled over on her side, cringing when her phone dug into her side. Fuck! She thought as she pulled the phone out of her pocket. She swore under her breath as she saw how many messages that Beth had left her. Her fingers shook slightly as she dialed her cousin's number, terrified of the reaction she would be getting.

"Oh thank God!" is the first thing that came out of Beth's mouth. This was a complete surprise. She was expecting a tirade not this. "Where are you?"

Arndis sat up again and stood from her bed, feeling oddly stiff. Her calves hurt as if she had been running. Her calves ached, burned like nothing she had ever experienced before. She sat herself down slowly on the bed again, letting her screaming muscles relax. "I'm at home, what's wrong?"

Beth breathed a sigh of relief, so loud that Arndis could hear it through the phone. "Thank god! These guys were attacked not too long ago. And they were found right on the path that you take to my house. I was so worried when you weren't answering your phone!"

Arndis felt a chill creep up her back and felt an odd pain in her temple. Oh great, migraine incoming. Despite the horror of the story her cousin was telling her, she felt nothing, nothing at all, except maybe…satisfaction? But how was that possible? People were attacked! She shook off her odd feeling and answered her cousin. "Sorry, but I guess I was exhausted, I must have fallen asleep."

"Well thank God for your narcolepsy." Beth said and Arndis rolled her eyes. Beth didn't understand what narcolepsy really was and she used it improperly no matter how many times Arndis tried to explain it to her. She let it go this time though, thinking there was a more pressing issue.

"Did you go to the party?" Arndis asked, lying down and staring at the ceiling, at the stars she had stuck to her ceiling, in the shapes of her favourite constellations. For some reason her thoughts went to aliens, something she never really thought of, but she shook herself, forcing her mind to focus on her cousin's words.

"No, Melissa texted me and told me that Mark had arrived with some chick he had found at the convenience store, and I really didn't want to watch him man-handle her all night."

Arndis felt her stomach roll at her cousin's use of the word "manhandle" but couldn't understand why. She sighed, "Bring a bottle of wine and come over?"

Beth laughed and agreed, telling her that she'd have her mom drop her off in an hour.

Arndis hung up the phone with a sigh. The last thing she wanted was to hang out with her cousin and listen to all her problems, but as Beth was practically her only friend, as sad as it was, she owed it to her. She didn't have to be all dressed up though. She walked into her bathroom and shed the leather jacket she wore, she gasped as she looked in the mirror. On her right arm there was a massive bruise. She looked at it closely and saw what looked like finger-marks there. Who the fuck had grabbed her so hard? She racked her brain, but she felt a fit of nausea hit her and she knelt down and hugged the toilet bowl. What the fuck was wrong with her? Was she sick? It would explain the nausea and the random sleeping, but where the fuck did the bruise and intense muscle pain come from?

* * *

Arndis sat behind the counter of the book shop, yet again. She spent most of her waking hours here, if she wasn't at school. This was her favourite place to do homework, and because of the lack of customers, she had plenty of time to do it. She had come in with two coffees, one for herself and then one for her aunt, who she would be relieving from sitting and helping customers. Her Aunt Tessa, Beth's mom, was like a second mother to her. And because of this, she could read her aunt perfectly.

Tessa was pacing in front of the desk, and Arndis watched her go back and forth, waiting for her aunt to finally blurt out what it was she was thinking. She didn't have to wait long, as Tessa turned to her suddenly, with tears in her eyes, and exclaimed, "They're dead, Arndis." Arndis looked at her aunt in confusion. She knew that. She woke up every day with that knowledge.

"You don't seem to realise that! You haven't properly grieved, except for shutting yourself off." Tessa approached the desk and took Arndis' hands in her own. "Your mother wouldn't want this for you. I've been lenient, but enough is enough. You have to do something, go out, get a boyfriend, live, and be young!"

Arndis felt tears stinging her eyes at the mention of her mother. The thought which she never liked to entertain, but which was constantly in her mind, flared stronger than ever. Her parents, both of the people she loved most in the world, taken from her violently, accidentally. She looked away from her aunt and out the window, watching as some snow lightly fell. The first snowfall of the year. It was around this time two years previous that her parents had their car accident. Arndis pushed away from the desk and walked towards the stacks of books and started putting some away. She could feel her aunt's eyes on her, but ignored her for the moment. The familiar anger was surging its way through her. She didn't believe blindly as her aunt did that the car crash was an accident entirely, caused by her father falling asleep at the wheel. Her aunt said she had never progressed out of the anger stage of the cycle of grief, but Arndis knew it was more than that. Her father was an impeccable driver, he wouldn't drive if he had even one glass of beer, and would have never driven if he was tired enough to fall asleep at the wheel. She knew her father and his habits, and she also knew her mother. Her mother was never one to sleep in the car, and would have been aware even if her father had dozed off momentarily. They didn't let her see the bodies either. Despite her instance that she needed to be sure it was them. Too gruesome, it was stated, she wasn't old enough to deal with that. Something was awry and she knew it, but couldn't talk about it anymore. When she had continued on about her suspicion to her aunt and Beth, her aunt had taken her to a psychiatrist who had prescribed Arndis medications that made her brain foggy and her emotions subdued. Her sadness and anger was subdued, yes, but so was her happiness. She was an emotionless zombie, and didn't want to ever feel that way again. Unknown to her aunt, she had flushed her medication years ago, about a month after she had been on them. She had learned though, that people weren't ready to be brave and face the facts, they were more inclined to believe what people in power told them to. Well fuck that. She took a couple deep breaths and calmed herself, she wasn't really angry at her aunt, as Tess was just doing what she thought was best, but Arndis wished she wasn't the only one who found her parents' deaths suspicious. She turned back to her aunt and plastered a smile onto her face. "You're right…I should get out more." Her statement had the exact effect she had expected, and was hoping for. Her aunt looked flustered to have been agreed with, and she looked sad, yet happy that she was listened to. She nodded her head once and grabbed her bag off the floor. Arndis waved goodbye to her aunt who she knew would leave as soon as she agreed to listen to her.

Arndis sighed and sat back down on her stool. She sat still for a couple minutes, deciding what she would do with her life for the next couple of hours. She didn't feel like doing homework, so she was at a loss._ Loki_. The name popped into her head. She frowned to herself, wondering why she had thought of the Norse God. She hadn't thought about Norse deities in years. She stood up and went to the historical section of the book store, finding the text she wanted. She smiled as she looked at the cover. She had the exact book at home on her bookshelf. Her father would read her the myths as bedtime stories, so she always found herself not understanding fairy-tales where everything turned out perfectly, as she was more accustomed to the horrors and triumphs of the Norse Gods. She sat back at her stool and opened the text to the correct page. There was a picture of the god there, modernly interpreted. She stared at it and oddly thought that something was wrong. They didn't capture him properly. She laughed at herself, wondering why she thought that she would know what the God of Mischief and Lies would look like. She grinned to herself as she read the stories that Loki was involved in, more often than not, mucking things up for his brother Thor and his adopted father Odin. A feeling of sadness pained her heart as she re-read the story where Loki's heritage is revealed. She knew what it felt like to lose your entire world, and to have no one to turn to or trust anymore…she could sympathize with the devious god now, whereas she never could before. Thor had always been her favourite character, but she wondered if that was changing, not reading the text with the eyes of a child anymore.

Arndis looked up at the sound of the bell ringing on the door. She felt a smile come to her face naturally. The man who had walked into the store was extremely good looking. He smiled at her and approached the counter. Arndis closed the book of Norse mythology and slid it behind the register, not wanting to weird out this guy during her first impression. Maybe her aunt was right, maybe she should date more. He shook his blonde hair out of his eyes and leaned casually against the counter. "Hey I was wondering if you could help me?" he asked, his voice was pleasant, but she felt as though something was missing.

"Sure, if I can." He laughed at her answer and then asked her if she had any books on Norse Mythology, or their ancient artifacts. Arndis felt a smile come to her face as she thought that this was her lucky day. What a coincidence! She grabbed the book in her hands, and was about to present it to this strange, yet handsome, customer, when she heard a voice yell out _NO_! Arndis blinked, and looked around, but saw no one else in the store. She turned her eyes back to the man at the counter, and he was still looking at her, as though he hadn't heard anything. She smiled again and opened her mouth to tell him, and again a deep, dark voice whispered this time, _No, dearest. I wouldn't advise doing that._ Arndis blinked again, feeling a headache start to pound in her temple. Something was telling her not to do it. It was different than the inner voice she usually heard when she was about to do something stupid, but she decided to heed it anyways. "Sorry, I just sold the only text on Norse Mythology a few days ago. It's a strange area of study. Perhaps you should try the library. Especially the one at the university, as they'll be sure to have something like that."

He looked disappointed and looked into her eyes carefully, as if he knew she was lying. "Yes, I'll have to do that…" Arndis felt disappointment flow through her as he turned and started to walk out of the store. He turned back suddenly, as if he read her thoughts. "I know this seems sudden, and a little odd, but would you like to get coffee with me sometime?"

Arndis felt a smile spread across her face at the same time the deep voice in her head echoed his command of _NO!_ She swallowed and then defied the voice, why shouldn't she go out with this guy? It's just coffee. She nodded her head, "I'd like that." She swore she almost heard a growl behind her, but she didn't look, figuring that the sound was once again in her head. The handsome blonde smiled, and put her phone number into his phone. He promised to text her soon, and left the store.

Arndis felt guilt, heavy and thick, settle upon her. She sighed to herself, wondering why she was feeling guilty. Was it because she was finally moving on with her life after her parents' deaths? That would be the only possible solution. She sighed as she took out her phone to call Beth. If she didn't call her right away, then she knew there would be hell to pay later.


	4. Chapter 4

**Hey! Guess who's back?! Thanks so much for the favourites and reviews, the support really means a lot. **

**Enjoy!**

**xoxo**

* * *

Arndis walked slowly and flipped the sign to read closed. Not one customer had been in today, not even someone to stop and ask for directions. It had been a slow couple of weeks, actually. The only bright side was that she could focus on studying for her midterms, which as of that afternoon, she had finished. Arndis frowned and moved to the back of the store, where a small little kitchen was located. The store used to be a house, but her grandfather renovated it for their purposes. She put water in the kettle and started to boil it, wasting time in the shop, as she didn't want to go home to her empty apartment. It had been three weeks. He had promised to text her, but it had been three weeks. Arndis clutched her mug angrily and then sighed. She didn't know why she was so angry over a date that never happened. She had just been looking forward to going and doing something normal for once, and he was the only guy that had shown any interest in her in a long, long time. She pursed her lips as something inside her told her that the statement wasn't quite right. The kettle squealed and she poured the hot water into her mug, she put her tea bag into the cup and watched as the colour started to permeate the water. She blew on the beverage and was just about to take a sip when the bell on the front door jingled. Arndis sighed and put down the mug. She should have locked the door, she mused. It was a small town, and no one locked their doors at night, especially when they were home. The only true things of value in this place were locked up expertly, thanks to a colleague of her father's. She slowly walked out into the main part of the store, saying, "Sorry, but we've closed for the eve-" she cut off as her eyes fell upon the person inside her store. She assumed it was a person, she couldn't tell, as all she could see was a figure crumpled on the floor, near the door. "Holy shit. Are you alright?" she asked as she rushed over to the figure. She peered over the man, she knew it was a man as his form was too big to be female, and the haggard breathing coming from him was deep and masculine. His clothing was torn, but it looked nice, she would imagine the suit and tie would have looked sharp before it was destroyed. "Sir?" she asked, reaching into her back pocket for her phone, to call an ambulance.

"Put that down." The man said, his voice horse, but it sounded familiar. A feeling of déjà vu flowed over her, and the man chuckled slightly before gasping in pain. She complied with his request and put the phone back into her pocket.

"We need to get you to a hospital!" she exclaimed, fluttering her hands over top of him, not sure where he was hurt, wanting to help but not wanting to harm him any further.

"That won't be necessary, Arndis."

She started at his use of her name. The town wasn't a big one, but it was large enough that not everyone would know her, especially because she was sure that she had never met him before. A headache started to form in the back of her skull. She pushed past it and turned the man's shoulder, so she could see his face. He was grinning but his teeth were covered in blood, and it was leaking out of the side of his mouth. There was a large cut above his eyebrow, which was gushing blood, some had started leaking into his eyes. Arndis gasped both at the injury to his face, but also at the familiarity. She blinked a few times as intense pain shot through her skull, sending her reeling backwards. She fell onto her back, curling into the fetal position, clutching her head as wave after wave of stabbing pain rolled over her. She dimly was aware of the man leaning over her, and she felt his hands on her temples before she felt the pain slightly easing, and subsiding. His touch was cool on her skin, and as she opened her eyes and looked at him, his face was etched in worry, the expression contrasting against the blood that was still dripping down his face, sliding off his chin and landing on her shirt.

"Loki," she whispered, finally remembering what her mind had been trying to figure out for the past month. She remembered everything now, who he was, what he had done. She sat up and touched the gash on his forehead, causing him to wince. "What happened to you?"

"They found me." Arndis didn't need to ask who, she figured it was either the Avengers, or some other type of government organization. "And as you can see, I didn't fare so well."

"You should really go to the hospital." She repeated again.

He laughed again and closed his eyes. She was afraid that he had passed out on her but she saw the same sort of faint green light surrounding him. And she gasped as she watched the gash on his forehead seal itself shut, so that it was just an angry red line. He opened his eyes again, and he looked tired. Arndis sat on her hands, wondering what would happen next. He stood, and wobbled slightly, causing Arndis to shoot to her feet as well. He smiled at her again. "Sorry for the intrusion. I just needed a place to hide and heal…somewhere they wouldn't know to find me."

"How did you know I'd be here?" she asked as he wobbled again, and she approached him and clutched his arm, offering herself as a crutch. He grimaced before resting his arm on her shoulders.

"I'm a god, woman. And this town isn't really that big."

_I'm a god_. The words repeated in her brain and she blinked up at him, wondering if he was delusional. Him being an alien, she could accept, but a god? That was an entirely different story. She decided not to press the issue for the moment and led him to sit down in one of the fluffy chairs. He sat down gratefully and grimaced slightly. Arndis went and locked the door, and pulled down the blinds, thinking that it was a good idea if people were out looking for him. She ran back into the kitchen and grabbed her still hot mug of tea and stepped close to him again. He looked good, she decided, despite the injuries he had received. The sight of him had her pulse jumping again. She held out the beverage to him and he looked at it curiously. She placed it in his hands and he looked surprised at the warmth it created. "It's tea…you…you drink it…"she said, feeling utterly ridiculous. He looked at her suspiciously but slowly raised the mug to his lips. Arndis found herself holding her breath as he took the first sip. She smiled as she watched surprise and pleasure pour over his features. The expression looked foreign on his face, his severe cheekbones seeming unused to the happiness that sat there now. She sat in front of him, unsure of what to do now, unsure of what would happen next.

He finished the drink and handed the cup back to her. She held the mug, as if it still held hot liquid, grateful for something to do with her hands. "You have something that I want, Arndis."

Arndis felt her eyes widen as her mind went to a very particular place. Her mouth went dry as she felt heat start to pool in her stomach. "W-What?" she stammered behind the lump in her throat.

He grinned at her, as if he could read her thoughts. "I think you are in possession of a rare book…something I need."

His words washed over her like a cold bucket of water, clearing her mind and extinguishing any desire she may have been feeling. She knew what book he wanted. He wanted the same book that government agent had wanted, and she was just as inclined to give it to this man as she was to give it to the man with the eye-patch. Despite her confusing feelings concerning this man, she would die before she would give up or hand over her mother's collection, her legacy. "I can't give you that," she said stubbornly, getting to her feet. She dimly realised that she was still holding the mug, although now as though it was a weapon, ready to defend herself when this alien tried to attack her. She clearly saw anger flare in his eyes and waited for the expected feeling of fear to come, but she didn't feel it, at least not as strongly as she would have expected. Perhaps it was seeing the man as he was, all beat up and weaker than when she had first encountered him.

He stood and towered over her, but she didn't back away. He looked down at her, anger in his face, and she could see the tension around his mouth, tightening his lips into a thin line. Instead of lashing out like she was expecting, he smiled down at her. "I'll just have to get you to trust me then." That was a surprise. She expected him to rough her up until she acquiesced. She let out breath that she didn't know she was holding, and backed away from him slightly, giving herself space to think. She looked at his clothing again and frowned.

"Before any of that, we'd better get you cleaned up." She, unthinkingly, grabbed his hand and pulled him back towards the kitchen. When she realised what she was doing, she let go of his hand quickly, astonished at herself, but also at the coldness of his skin. It was as though he had just had his hands in a bucket of ice. She turned to the sink and ran a new dish cloth under warm water. She turned back to him and smiled slightly, trying to diffuse the weirdness between them. While his cuts were mostly closed, his face was still bloodied, and if he was going to leave this store, that would have to be gotten rid of, as most people would call the police if they saw a bloodied man. She gestured for him to sit on the tall stool, so that she could reach his face without real effort. Her hand trembled as she wiped his forehead, trying to ignore the feeling of his breath on her face. It smelt spicy. She focused on her task before she could distract herself again with his face. A thought occurred to her. _Why didn't she call the police? She had her memories back, and knew who he was and what he did…why didn't she report him? Yes at first she was concerned for his safety, but he seemed alright now…so why…why wasn't she making an excuse to leave the room and phone….or even just dial the number and let them come…_

"Are you done? May I leave now?" his voice broke through her thoughts. She realised that she was clutching the rag in between her hands now, his face clean of the blood. She swallowed and nodded, avoiding looking into his eyes.

She grabbed a baggy hoodie that she had worn over to the store this afternoon and threw it at him. He pulled it over his head without comment. She was surprised when he walked to the front of the store. She turned off the light in the kitchen and went to stand beside him. He was peeking out the blinds. "So, are you coming?" he asked, surprising her. She had figured that he would just leave her, wiping her memory like he had the last time. The rational side of her brain told her that doing so would be stupid, that she had aided a criminal, and was going to continue to do so. Something else inside her though, told her that she was meant to go with him. She swallowed and grabbed her purse, quickly shutting off the lights to the store. She paused outside momentarily to lock the door. She looked at him, and he silently slipped his hand into hers and led her into an alleyway.

* * *

Arndis sat on a plush sofa, looking around at the impressively swanky apartment, much nicer than her own. Loki had gone into the bedroom to change his clothes. She wondered how a man she had seen a month ago in raggedy clothes, looking slightly homeless, could now afford such an expensive place. She looked skeptically at the large flat screen TV mounted to the wall. _Did he break into this place? Should I be keeping watch?_ She jumped when she heard a chuckle behind her. She whirled around but relaxed as her eyes settled on Loki. He was dressed casually in black jeans and a jean shirt. He looked extremely hipster, and it didn't seem to suit him. "Is this place yours?"

He laughed outright at the astonishment in her voice, as well as the skepticism. "Yes, it's amazing what mortals are willing to do to accommodate with the smallest amount of persuasion."

Arndis felt nausea roll through her. "Is that what you're doing to me?"

He cocked his head to the side. "No, but I could you know. It would be simple against a mortal such as yourself." Arndis looked down at her feet, wondering why he didn't just do that to her while they were still in the bookstore. He could have the information he's looking for already. He must have taken her thoughtfulness as disbelief as he knelt in front of her, making her meet his eyes. "My magic is quite strong, Arndis. You would do well not to question me."

Arndis felt fear roll through her, but perhaps it wasn't fear exactly, it was more like apprehension, as she could imagine what he would do to her. She swallowed, deciding to understand what exactly she was getting into. "So, you said before…you're a god?"

He nodded and stood in front of her again, puffing his chest out, as if to convince her of that fact. Aliens she could deal with. She could accept magic, but as an Atheist, accepting someone as a god was a stretch. "A god like Odin and Thor?" She asked, making sure she had the right mythic family.

His eyes darkened, and she bit her lip, feeling stupid for asking those names. In the book her father read her, it detailed the strained relationship between the All Father and his adoptive son, and she assumed that his relationship with Thor was little better. "Yes, we're all from Asgard."

Arndis nodded and thought hard to remember everything she had ever learned about these Norse gods. She knew that Loki was a frost giant, but what that actually meant, she wasn't sure. And given his reaction to her mention of Odin, she wasn't going to ask another difficult, personal question. "What about Sigyn?" she asked, remembering his mythic wife. One he never treated all that well.

He looked completely confused. "Sigyn?"

She narrowed her eyes. "Yes, you know…your wife?"

Loki looked completely bewildered. "I'm not married, nor do I have any desire to wed."

Arndis viewed him narrowly for another few moments, and then decided that she believed him. Sigyn was either non-existent or Loki hadn't met her yet. Her father would have been so disappointed, he loved Sigyn, so much that he had made the goddess's name her own middle name. She could only imagine her father's excitement if he would have been in this room, able to question an actual living god! "Is it true that you cross-gender? And have birthed children?"

Loki looked even more confused. "What in the Realms are you talking about?" He looked slightly offended by this set of questions and Arndis couldn't help the little laugh that escaped her. "Why are you asking me these things?"

Arndis reached into her bag and pulled out the mythic book she had been carrying around for the past few weeks, some compulsion that didn't make sense to her until now. She opened the book to his chapter and pointed at the flawed picture of him. "Humans have written about you and your family for thousands of years. They're almost like fairy-tales now. I can't say I'm disappointed that some of the stories were embellished. I don't know how I'd feel if you had birthed a giant snake."

"Jörmungandr?" he asked, correctly naming the snake from the myths.

"So you did?" she asked, her voice raising an octave.

He shook his head and laughed. "No, he's a pet of mine. I've had him for thousands of years."

Arndis nodded, marvelling at how humans could have misinterpreted certain things, but also at how otherwise accurate their writings were. How did they get this knowledge? Premonition? Did gods visit the earth during the time of the Vikings? She could see how primitive beings could blindly believe and embellish the stories they were told.

Apparently bored of her line of questioning, things that he had no idea of, Loki had started leafing through the book she had. He snorted a few times at things he read, but she didn't want to ask, not sure she could handle hearing that more of the myths were actually real. He turned to her after a few moments and he narrowed his eyes at her, making her squirm. "You didn't listen to me."

Now it was her turn to be utterly bewildered. She was pretty sure she had done everything he had asked, with giving him the book being the exception. "What?"

"I told you not to go out with that guy, the puny mortal from a couple weeks ago…"

Arndis gasped and stared at him. "You were watching me?"

He laughed. "Who do you think was giving you advice?"

She swallowed as she connected his voice to the one she had heard in her head a few times, especially when the blonde guy was around. She slanted her eyes at him, "What did you do to him?"

His smile widened, betraying his sense of gruesome humor. "I just told him not to contact you again. I was pretty convincing."

Arndis found herself angry that he would interfere in her life like that. But why not? He had selfishly interfered with her life tonight, making her open to criminal sanctions, so why should she be surprised. "But why?" she asked.

"He wasn't right for you. And I still need you." She was going to argue that he didn't know her well enough to make that call, but kept quiet, knowing that it would go nowhere. He continued to look at her until he said. "Kneel." She looked up at him in confusion again. He had turned in his seat so that he faced her. He looked up at her pointedly, and then at the floor. "You disobeyed me, Arndis, now kneel."

She shook her head. Her feminist principles were screaming at her telling her that he was into domination and subjugation, but she already knew that. He had tried to take over the earth for Pete's sake. She would not kneel. She had never gone on her knees for anyone, except when it was her choice to do so. She didn't form her denial into words, but he seemed to sense it. He sighed, long and hard, as if he was extremely weary of her stubbornness. Like she was being unreasonable! She let out a small scream as she felt herself propelled forward, onto her knees, without choosing to do so. Her knees smashed against the floor, making a loud bang. She looked up at him with anger and confusion, and wanted to lash out when she saw his cocky grin. She knew, even before she noticed the green light swirling around his fingers, that he had used magic to make her conform, and she hated him for it. She fought to stand up, but her legs felt like lead, keeping her pinned to the ground.

"There's a good mortal. That wasn't so hard, now was it?" he said and leaned his face in close to hers. She felt her pulse race as he placed one of his long slender fingers under her chin, lifting her head so that their faces were about even. She couldn't help the sigh that escaped her as his lips brushed lightly against hers. His lips were softer than she could ever have imagined, making her want to lean into his kiss. She stopped herself, not allowing him to distract her from her anger. He kissed her again, harder this time, his tongue gliding across her lower lip, causing chills to run up her spine. She hadn't been kissed like this in a long time-well, actually she had never been kissed quite like this. He lightly bit her lower lip as he pulled away, grinning at himself. She couldn't help it. Her hand had connected with the side of his face before she had fully recognized what she was planning on doing. The sound of her slap resonated through the air, and gave her a feeling of satisfaction. She was pretty sure it wouldn't actually hurt him, but it was still gratifying. She looked at him in fear, wondering what he would do to retaliate. She was surprised to see a pleased smile on his face. He reached out and tucked a stray strand of hair behind her ear. He then silently stood from the couch and leaned over to kiss the top of her head. She watched him, her head moving as he went back to his bedroom. As the door closed with an audible click, her legs regained their normal feeling. She laid on the floor, relief pouring through her.

_What the fuck have I gotten myself into?_


	5. Chapter 5

**Hey! Just me again! Not much to say, except that it gets a little steamy this chapter, so prepare yourselves, and your ovaries (if you are a woman). **

**Xoxo**

"Filthy mortals," Loki mumbled and she elbowed him hard in the side. They had stayed cooped up in his apartment for days, only her leaving to get food. She got Beth to cover for her at the bookstore, promising a good explanation later on. She worried her lip as she thought about why she was still there. Why she was still helping a wanted felon…as he was no longer in danger or harm. There was something different there, something deeper that she didn't want to think about.

"Hey, I take offense to that!" she exclaimed, pulling herself out of her thoughts, and forcing emotion into her voice. She heard him chuckle from beside her, exactly what she wanted to hear. It had only been a couple of days, but she knew what to say to make him angry and what to make him laugh. After that disturbing kneeling incident, everything had been fine, and Arndis forced herself not to dwell upon it.

They were walking down a busy street, anonymous in the sea of people that were trying to get home from work. She felt Loki tense against her, and she turned towards him, looking towards the direction he was staring. She mumbled, "Fuck." She pulled Loki to face her and pulled the hood of his sweater up and over his dark hair, hiding one of his most identifying features. She had debated telling him to dye it, but she couldn't force the words out of her mouth. She kept her back towards the objects in question, and allowed Loki to look over her shoulder inconspicuously, making it look like they were just a couple in deep conversation. Her heart pounded in her chest, and she felt the hairs on the back of her neck stand up. She recognized both of the people standing on the other side of the street, down a ways away. She knew the one man Captain America, or Steve Rogers, some government experiment specimen that had been lost and then found, extremely confusing and news worthy when he was found again. The other man was equally as famous. He was Tony Stark, of Stark industries, billionaire extraordinaire. She was familiar with his work, as was most of the world, especially as she dated an engineer earlier in University whose dream it was to work for Stark eventually. The kid literally had Stark's picture framed in his room. It didn't take a genius to figure out why they were there and who they were looking for. She wondered why they hadn't moved on though. Most criminals at large wouldn't try to stay in a small town, or at least she figured they wouldn't. Every cop show and book she read suggested so, but before these past few days, she had no true inkling of what criminals would do, she still really didn't.

"We should get out of here." He said, quietly. His voice barely audible over the din. He looked over her shoulder every so often, and kept himself pressed tightly to her. She felt her body start to heat and she cursed her sensitivity. He pulled back suddenly and looked her hard in the eye. "I need that book, Arndis."

She felt her back stiffen. He noticed and sighed, sounding weary as hell. She felt remorse flood through her, but she refused to vocalize it. Even though she was sorry to disappoint him, she wasn't ready to part with that book. There was more to it now though, she realised as she read the slight fear on his face, mixed with the tension and anger there. She knew that once he had the book, he would have no more use of her, and would leave her behind. The rational part of her realised that this would be the best thing for them both, but the stronger part of her wanted to remain with him. Her heart leapt when he grabbed her hand and pulled her along. It seemed like every time he touched her, her heart pounded and skin heated. It was as if she was a virgin again, and she wasn't sure she liked it.

He pulled her into an alley way and pressed her up against a wall with his body. Arndis closed her eyes and tried to keep her gasp quiet. He wasn't paying any attention to her however, as he looked back out towards the street, his eyes narrowed. She could feel her heart hammering in her chest and she figured that he could feel it too. She hoped he attributed it to their running, or her nerves, and not because of him. She tried not to think about his long, hard body pressed against her own, trapping her against the wall. For some reason the slight domination here made it even more exciting for her. She couldn't move if she tried, but she wasn't trying. She felt his chest rise and fall as he exhaled harshly, as if in relief. She had almost forgotten about the two avengers that were so close by. She looked up into his dark green eyes and was suddenly glad for the wall behind her to keep her upright. His pupils were dilated slightly, and she bit her lip to hold in a moan when his hands framed her hips, holding her steady. She swallowed and then cleared her throat. "Coast clear?" she asked, her voice huskier than she hoped it would be. She saw him grin cockily before he nodded, answering her question without words.

"You are quite excitable, aren't you, Arndis?" he asked, his deep voice causing chills to break out across her skin. In normal circumstances his accent and timbre would make her think of sex, but his husky tone right now made her want to melt into a puddle. She could feel heat in her cheeks, but she tried to keep her face neutral, while pressing her hands roughly into the bricks behind her. He lifted a single finger and trailed it along her neck, causing her to shiver. His long finger rested at her chin and he looked at her appraisingly. "So weak, and fragile." She opened her mouth to argue, but his next words stopped her. "Yet so beautiful." She felt her mouth drop open at his words. _Beautiful?_ She was not beautiful, even by human standards, she could only imagine the women from his home world. She was pretty, but in an average way. He chuckled at her reaction and then pressed his lips lightly to hers. Again, his kiss surprised her. He was gentler than she expected him to be, as into domination as he was. She wiggled her body against his, desperate to make him feel as she did. She felt more than heard as he growled, and his hands tightened on her hips. She laughed quietly parting her lips. He dove in without more of an invitation. She took her hands from the wall behind her and wound them around his shoulders, pulling down his hood to let her fingers play with this beautiful hair. Arndis looked over Loki's shoulder as she heard a gasp. An elderly lady stood behind them, with her hand pressed to her mouth. Arndis quickly pushed Loki off of her, thanking god that they had been doing nothing but making out a little bit. She seemed to lose all sense of decorum when he was concerned. He turned around and glared at the elderly woman who, thank god, Arndis didn't know. She was slightly afraid for the old woman so she grabbed Loki's hand and pulled him along, away from the old lady and her scrutiny and from Loki's possible angry reaction.

She continued to pull him along the familiar streets, and found herself in front of her apartment building, without deciding to go there. She cringed as she recalled how his apartment looked, and didn't know if she wanted to bring him up to hers. She loved her place, but it was a lot more modest than his was.

She looked up at the sky when a peel of thunder sounded. The sun was shining and there were no real clouds in the sky, and she frowned, was it going to storm? She felt as Loki fidgeted at her side, and she made her decision and unlocked the door. She didn't look back at him as she climbed the three flights of stairs in her building. She didn't want to see the disapproval in his eyes, so she kept her eyes straight ahead of her and she fumbled with her keys. She was glad that she rarely saw her neighbors, as there were less people to attest to his presence at her place. She walked right into her apartment, leaving the door opened for him to enter behind her, but she walked to the large window in the living area. The sky had darkened in the minutes they were inside, and lightening had started to flash through the sky. She shivered despite being indoors. She dimly heard him close the door, and then he was suddenly behind her. She found it odd that he spent no time looking around her place, as if he had been there before. Her mind stopped wandering as he stepped closer to her. While he wasn't pressed against her, he was close enough that she could feel his body heat on her back. "I hate storms," she commented, watching the few people out on the streets hurry on their way, attempting to get indoors before the impending rain hit.

She felt and heard him chuckle against her back. He had pressed himself against her now, and he rested his head on top of hers, looking out the window much as she was. "As do I." She wanted to lean against him really badly, but stopped herself. She was acting crazy. She barely knew this man, and he was a criminal, guilty of heinous crimes, and was surely going to leave her within the next couple of days. She couldn't let her guard down this much. She moved herself away from him, as subtly as she could think to. She moved to the kitchen and started looking through the fridge, looking for something to make for dinner. She could feel his eyes on her but she ignored him as best as she could as she cut chicken into pieces and threw it into a frying pan. He sat at the dining table, his eyes remaining on her. Arndis chewed on her lip as his eyes followed her. She had never been watched so closely in her life, not even when her aunt had her on suicide watch after her parents' deaths. She went and cut up vegetables for the stir-fry as she wondered why he was being so silent. As if he read her mind, he spoke. "It means that Thor is on his way here."

She turned to face him, surprised to find worry etching lines on his face, as well as something sadder. "Your bro-" she started but decided against her wording at his glare. "_Thor Thor?_" she rephrased.

He nodded, a sad smile on his face. "You aren't one of the mortal women that love him, are you?"

She laughed. "No, not me. But I'm sure there are many. He already has his mortal woman, right? Jane something or other." Loki looked surprised at her knowledge. "It's not that much of a secret, Loki. Aliens coming from space, everything about them is publicized." She turned around and added the vegetables to her sauté pan. "Although, I can see why they like him. All those muscles…" she said, teasingly. She wanted to slap herself afterwards. She was running hot and cold now, pulling away just to tease him again. When he didn't respond she turned around to face him. She was surprised to see sadness on his face, and what looked like insecurity. She approached him and touched his face lightly. He had slight bags under his eyes from stress and she touched one lightly with her thumb. "Although, I am more partial to men with dark hair." She smiled slightly at him when he looked up at her quickly, his eyes searching hers. He grabbed her hand that was still touching his face, and he brought her fingers to his lips, slowly taking her index finger into his mouth. She gasped and pulled her hand away, ignoring how her stomach was clenched and her thighs loosened. "Dinner…dinner will burn," she mumbled and hurried her way back to the stove. She could feel heat on her face, and she could sense his smug smile, even though her back was to him. She washed lettuce, just to keep her hands busy. She was surprised when he approached her and took the spoon out of the pan and gave the food a stir. She wouldn't have pictured him as one to help out, with his God complex. She handed him the stir-fry sauce and he deftly opened the bottle and added a good dollop to the mixture. She watched as he stirred the sauce, with a look of deep concentration on his face. She couldn't lie that the sight gave her butterflies. There was something incredibly sexy about a man who would cook, or at least help with the cooking. His tongue snuck out of his lips as he focused and Arndis wanted to capture it with her own. She shook her head physically and turned back to the lettuce, breaking it into small pieces. She had to calm her shit. He wanted something from her, other than just herself, and he could use this weakness for him to his advantage.

The thunder grew louder outside and Arndis felt her fingers clench on the spoon in her hand, for mixing in the dressing. She closed her eyes tightly, hating this other weakness she had. Her parents left when it was storming, and they died the next morning. She always associated storms with them leaving, and feared she always would. She heard the click when he turned off the burner on the stove, and came behind her. He wrapped his arms around her middle, pulling her against him. "It's just a storm, Arndis. Just Thor being himself, nothing to fear." Something about his words bothered her, as now she would associate Thor with her parents' deaths, even though it was probably coincidental…although she didn't believe in coincidences. "I should go and see him, see what he has come to tell me." He pulled away from her and she couldn't help the whimper that escaped her lips.

"Loki…please. Don't leave just yet." She said, her voice quiet, not used to asking for help. She just knew she didn't want to be left alone at this moment. He turned around, his brow crumpled in confusion. She knew he would view this as weak, but she didn't care. She was weak, she was human, not some sort of alien-god thing.

"If I go, the thunder will stop. I'll be back soon, Arndis, don't fret." Loki smiled at her, completely oblivious to her inner turmoil. He waved and left out the front door, a trail of green light behind him.


	6. Chapter 6

**Hey there! SO this chapter is kind of sub-par for me, as it was just about plot device and making the story move along. A few parts seem kind of abrupt, and I apologize. Anyways, I hope you find it interesting what I do with the "heroes" of the Avengers. And to Captain America fans, I apologize, but only a little. And i apologize in advance for the lack of updates that will be happening in the next few weeks. It's crunch time at school, and all of my free time will be dedicated to this, but I won't have much. Thanks for your understanding. **

**Enjoy!**

**xoxo**

* * *

Another roll of thunder cracked, and she huddled on the kitchen floor, pressing her back up against the cabinetry. She felt her cell phone vibrate and she took it out of her pocket with shaking fingers, expecting to see Beth's number on her screen, checking in on her. However, it was a strange number, but something compelled her to answer it.

"Arndis?" a vaguely familiar voice asked. She nodded, but then realised that he couldn't hear that, and she said yes, out loud.

"It's Charles, from the bookstore a few weeks ago…."

Arndis felt a smile on her face. "Mr. Norse mythology, right?"

He laughed, but something sounded off about the sound. "Yeah. Listen, I know the weather is terrible, but can I see you? I feel terrible about not calling you till now, but I've been busy, and something strange happened. I'll explain more in person, I promise. I just really need to talk to you, it's really important. What do you say?"

Arndis thought about how angry Loki would be when he found out, but she also knew that she really didn't want to be alone through this storm. And Charles sounded desperate and concerned. "Sure, but you have to come here, I'm not going out in that."

Charles laughed, and agreed, repeating her address back to her. Arndis hung up the phone and felt guilt flow through her again. She knew that Loki would be livid, but she also knew that she shouldn't lead Charles on like she was. With Loki in the picture, nothing would happen with him, and his interest in Nordic gods was too much of a coincidence for her taste. It didn't take him long to come over. She heard her buzzer ring within twenty minutes.

She went to the door and placed her hand on the doorknob, and hesitated. She felt something was definitely off about what was going on here. Why would he text her the moment Loki left? She peered through the peep hole, and into his familiar face. He looked around himself, as if he was nervous. Another loud crack of thunder sounded, making up her mind for her. She slowly unlocked the door. He stood there, not smiling, nor did he offer her a word of greeting. The feeling of wrongness she had intensified and she reached for the door to slam it closed, but an arm stopped her. An arm clad in blue spandex material. She swallowed as the door was slowly opened again, and she backed up, further into her apartment, wondering the best way of escape. Charles, if that was even his name, entered first, and looked at her with a mixture of pity and disappointment. The man in the blue spandex entered next. He was easily recognizable in his costume, Captain America. She felt fear flow through her, and she almost laughed at herself. Only she would be scared of someone trying to protect the world. "Where is he?" Captain asked, his voice bordering on hostile.

Arndis knew exactly who he was talking about but knew playing dumb would work best for her. "OMG! You're captain America!" she said in the most adoring way she could muster. He looked taken aback by her statement, and his spine straightened. Arndis wanted to roll her eyes, _men and their egos. _"Why are you in my apartment? And how do you know Charles?" she asked, while her brain figured out the answers for itself. Charles' presence in her shop wasn't coincidental, he was planted there. She silently thanked Loki for intervening in that aspect, because she definitely would have gone on multiple dates with the guy, and he would have been faking.

Charles walked up to her, his face blank, everything attractive about him was gone with this expression. He looked harder than stone. Definitely government agent material. "Cut the crap, Arndis. We're looking for Loki."

She quirked her eyebrow and set her mouth in an open position. "Loki? You mean in a book? Like on the Norse god? The one you were looking for before, because I told you to go to the library. I don't have one for sale here." Charles sighed in frustration and Arndis fought to keep a grin off her face. She could play the vapid female when she needed to. She turned her eyes back to Captain America. "Why are you here?"

"Arndis." Charles interceded, "You know we're not talking about a book. You know he is real, just like Thor is real. Where is Loki?"

She cocked her head to the side and did her best to look bewildered. "Why would he be here?"

Captain America looked at her closely and then turned his attention to Charles, coolly saying, "Yes, Charles, why would he be here?"

Charles approached her, and grabbed her arm roughly, anger glinting dangerously in his eyes. She felt more fear in this moment then she had ever felt in Loki's presence. "I saw you with him."

Arndis shook her head. "What are you talking about? I haven't been out with anyone male in over two years." She decided to play the guilt card, "I hoped I could with you, but you never called." She watched his eyes flick to Captain America, and his cheeks redden a little. She bit back a grin again, surmising that the Captain didn't know of this little detail. Arndis decided to go for outrage now. "And who do you think I am? If I had been going out with someone, Norse God or otherwise, why would I invite you over?" Something like guilt flowed through her at this sentence, knowing that it was a lie, as that is exactly what she had done. _But, _she reasoned with herself, _they weren't actually together…she was just…helping him out. Yeah._ She straightened her back and tilted her chin upwards and poked Charles in the chest. "What kind of girl do you think I am?" His eyes widened and he backed away, showing weakness, which is all that Arndis needed. "And you, you think you can waltz into my life, charming and promising a coffee date, which I agreed to for the first time since my parents died, and you just don't call. Do you know what that does to a girl? How it wrecks her self-confidence?" She looked away, forcing tears to come to her eyes, and when she looked back he seemed shocked to see them there. "And then you call, and I decide to give you another chance, and you show up with him" she said gesturing angrily to Captain America, "and interrogate me?" She poked his chest again, making sure her nail dug into his skin. "What the fuck is wrong with you?" she almost shouted, feeling that it would be effective.

Charles looked taken aback and he looked to Captain America , who had stepped forward, and looked awkward as hell. "Miss, Arndis, please." He said, and Arndis turned to him, forcing blush to stain her cheeks, as if embarrassed by the display. She brought her hands up to cover her face, while still watching him from between her fingers, not trusting either of them to truly commit to the embarrassment she should be feeling. "We mean no offense. Charles just thought you may have information about the man we are seeking, as you and your bookstore keep popping up in our investigation."

"It's because I didn't give Eye Patch the book he wanted, isn't it? I told him like I told Charles, we don't have anything like that in stock." She said slowly, as if figuring it out just at that moment. She knew Eye Patch was going to spell bad news for her, she just hoped she could get herself out of it.

Captain America looked hard at Charles again, and then approached her. He looked deep into her eyes and she felt fear go through her again. His face remained hard, as if he could tell that she was lying. He grabbed her chin suddenly, and she had the odd thought that he was going to kiss her. "Well, Ms. Andersen, if anything suspicious happens, or you see the man that we've been looking for, please, contact us. I believe you have Charles' number." Arndis swallowed, hearing the underlying threat in his voice, knowing that he was calling her on her bullshit, even though he had nothing to base it on. He let go of her and motioned to Charles and they both left, leaving the door open. Arndis sunk to her knees, in both fear and relief. Again she asked herself why she didn't just out Loki, he wasn't even here to get caught by them. She could have been done with this whole affair. She sat back onto her bottom and pulled her knees up to her chest, knowing that she should get up and close the door, but her energy was gone. She'd lied to law enforcement, or something of that nature. She had done something seriously wrong. She looked up when there was a gasp from the door. She frowned at the unfamiliar man standing in her doorway. _Ohh great, some psycho. Just what I need._ The man came in and closed the door, and Arndis didn't even protest. She sighed in relief when this green light surrounded the man's body, and then Loki stood there in his place. He approached her and knelt before her, his hands touching her face, his eyes looking her over.

"Did that Avenger touch you?" he asked, his voice resonating with anger.

Arndis was about to shake her head, when Loki lifted her arm, where Charles had grabbed her. Her skin was so fair that there were already faint traces of bruising there. "It wasn't bad." She answered. He stood and he paced in front of her, making her slightly dizzy.

"He shouldn't have done that." She could almost feel the anger radiating off of him, and she opened her mouth to tell him who actually had manhandled her, but his next words stopped her. "He should never have touched what is mine." Arndis felt her mouth go dry, and she felt her eyes widen. Loki didn't notice, as he kept pacing, as if he hadn't spoken out loud, and perhaps he hadn't intended to. She felt a thrill go through her at his words, but also felt fear.

"What is yours?" she repeated quietly. He stopped pacing and turned to face her. She expected embarrassment to be on his face, but it wasn't there. Instead there was pride and confidence, and a slight smirk, as if to challenge her to deny that it was true. She felt a shiver pass through her.

"Yes, you are mine, Arndis. Whether you chose to believe it now or not." She felt another delicious shiver pass through her and she felt her thighs loosen. A part of her rejoiced, as the part that had feared him leaving her was pacified. Another part, the one that was terrified of her altercation with Captain America, wanted her to deny that it was true. She knew that accepting this would mean the end of her life as she knew it.

She wasn't going to leave him, she already knew that. If it was going to happen, she would have done it already. She nodded at him, and stood, approaching him and put out her hand in front of her, waiting for him to grab it. He looked at her questioningly, but grabbed her hand, lacing his fingers with hers. "Let's go then."

He looked completely confused, "Go? Go where?" She just gave him a small smile and told him to change his shape again, as they were probably being watched, and they had to go outdoors.


	7. Chapter 7

**AHHH I'm so excited for this chapter! I fangirled so hard while writing it. **

**Anyways, enjoy! And don't be afraid to review!**

**xoxo**

Arndis silently unlocked the door to the bookstore. It was late at night, and no one else would be around, but she didn't turn on the lights. Instead she pushed Loki inside and locked the door behind them again. She grabbed his hand, noticing when the green light surrounded him again, transforming him back into his proper form, not the middle-aged balding man he just was. She deftly led him around the shop she knew so well and up the staircase at the back of the building. Here she turned on a light, and she heard Loki whistle, low in his throat at the technology that was there. She didn't turn around to look at him, scared that something on his face would undo her confidence in him. She pressed her thumb into the appropriate place and silently entered the door when it opened. She heard him enter after her, but she didn't turn to look. Her stomach was a ball of nerves about finally giving him what he desperately wanted, afraid of what it would mean for her. She turned on the lights in the smaller room, the fluorescent bulbs shining harshly down on them. She watched him look around, and she smiled to herself. This room was impressive, apparently even to a god. She felt her chest swell with pride over what her family had accomplished. He turned back to her, his eyes questioning.

She moistened her lips and then sighed. She gestured to the case at the farthest end of the room. "The book, the one you are looking for. It's in that case." She wrapped her arms around herself tightly. "Just…just be careful with it. It means a lot to me." She swallowed and talked on, knowing that she talked when she got nervous. "This book is how my parents met. My father was a professor of old Nordic language and history, and my mother a rare book collector and appraiser. They met by chance and hit it off." She looked at his eyes, which were wide. "It's one of the last things I have of theirs."

"You trust me?" he asked, his voice quiet, while approaching her and grabbing her hands.

Arndis nodded, holding his hands in her own, knowing that she truly did.

He smirked, but it held no humor. "Every Asguardian would say you are a fool for doing so."

She walked across the room and unlocked the case to the book and opened it silently. She turned to look at him, into his eyes. She was comforted by what she saw there. They weren't cocky, or triumphant, but they looked full of awe and wonder, whether at her trust in him, or at the book itself, she wasn't sure. "Then I'm a fool." She said quietly, bringing his attention back to her.

He approached her suddenly, his eyes flashing something she couldn't read. "Why? Why do you trust me?"

Arndis shook her head, confused when he clutched her shoulders and brought his face close to hers, as if looking for lies. "I don't quite know why. It's just a feeling. It's different when I'm with you…I feel different." She shrugged and smiled sheepishly. The expression drained off his face after a few moments, but he didn't let her go.

"You amaze me, mortal." Loki said, his voice barely above a whisper. He pressed his lips against hers, causing her to gasp, before kissing his way down her neck. He slightly pushed her backwards, gently, until she found herself backed up against a wall. Thoughts of the last time this happened flashed through her brain and she tried her best to stifle the blush that threatened to light her cheeks. Loki chuckled, a deep and delicious sound. His face was still near the base of her throat, and she groaned loudly, when he ran his tongue up along her throat, stopping to suckle at a particularly sensitive spot. Her hands weren't happy to be kept out of the way this time, and they hungrily dove into his hair. He hissed against her when her nails scraped against his scalp, leaving marks most certainly, but she didn't care. His mouth gradually kissed its way up her throat, and across her chin until pausing, hesitating millimetres from her own. "You are _mine._" He said, fiercely before crushing his lips onto hers. Arndis could barely think after that. His lips were dominating hers, hastily and with force, which only added to her own desire. He pressed her tighter against the wall behind her, and she briefly looked behind her, making sure they weren't pressed against a glass case or something that would fall over, but she was relieved to see one of the only blank walls behind her. She lifted her one leg and wrapped it around his hips, making him growl against her. The sound fanned the fire that had started to burn within her and she moaned when he kissed his way down her neck again. She felt a momentary fear when he pushed her sweater off of her shoulders with his deft hands, but he kissed her again, taking all thoughts from her mind. She ground her hips against his, thrilling when she felt his erection pressing against her, desperate to make him want her. She bit her lip to quiet a moan when he roughly grabbed at her breasts, his hands massaging them together before dipping under her shirt to tease her over the lacy material of her bra. She could feel her panties dampen and she writhed against him harder. She was both unsurprised and disappointed when he pulled away. Of course, what hold could she have on him when he finally had access to the book he so wanted. She lowered her leg to the ground and released him from her hold, cursing the raging desire that was still pounding through her. To her surprise he rested his head against her shoulder and took a deep breath. "You will be the death of me, Arndis." He said and kissed her slowly once again, making her knees melt, and she leaned up against the wall again to support herself. "Please tell me there is something that resembles a bed in this place." Arndis felt surprise flicker over her features as her mouth opened, and she gaped at him. _What?_ He pulled back to look at her face, his expression suddenly troubled, and bordering on angry. "You aren't going to deny me, are you Arndis?" When she continued to gape at him he chuckled and kissed her neck. "That would be most cruel, even by my standards." Realization hit her all at once, like a brick. She leaned back, so she could look into his eyes. _He wanted her_. _Stupid, boring, mortal her._

"You…you want to…sleep with me?" she asked, feeling dumb as hell. He laughed and nodded, his eyes gleaming with lust. Realising that she wasn't telling him no, he kissed her lips once again, dominating her mouth. He lifted her into his arms, as if she weighed no more than a small child would. She wrapped her legs around him, her body acting of its own accord as her mind tried to wrestle with events that were going on. He started to carry her out of the room, but she stopped him. "But the book?" she protested mildly, really not wanting him to stop.

"It will be there in a few hours." He growled in the back of his throat, causing her heart to soar, and justifying her trust in him all the more.

* * *

Arndis rolled over and sighed. She looked at the familiar surroundings of the small bedroom of the bookstore. She had slept there before, when pulling an all-nighter doing homework, or when she closed the store at night and opened the next morning and was too lazy to go home in between. But in all the times she had stayed here, she had never had company…before last night anyways. She turned over and faced the side of the bed where he would have been lying. Except he had woken her hours before and told her that he was going upstairs to look through the book. She couldn't' blame him, she supposed, and he did look after her well first. She felt blush rise to her cheeks as she remembered just how well she had been taken care of. His hands and mouth were skilled, to say the least.

She moved and winced slightly, and then grinned because her lower half was sore. He was bigger and a little rougher than anyone she had been with before, not that her list was long. She'd had a few boyfriends throughout the years, but was only intimate with one of them…and that had ended before her parents died. She stretched out on the bed, loving the soreness that she had, as it reminded her of the night before. It had been well over two years since anyone, besides herself, touched her in that way, and she honestly wanted more. She grinned to herself as she found her clothes again and threw them on. Poor Loki, he didn't realize he had opened the floodgates again. She quietly slipped up the stairs, glad that it was a Saturday, and that the store didn't have to open until noon, so she and Loki still had a few hours before Beth was set to arrive. She smiled to herself, at the relief that poured through her when she saw him. Despite what had transpired between them, and what was said, she still was afraid that he would have left her, taken the book and ran. She approached him, hunched over one of the tables in the room, and leafing through the book, with expert knowledge, just like her mom had taught her to. She had never thought about showing him those techniques, but apparently he already knew. She stopped short of touching him, and just peered over his shoulder. She jumped when he swiveled around in his chair, so he was facing her, and pulled her closer to him, so she was standing in between his legs. He seemed to have no shyness the morning after, as he grabbed her hips and pressed a kiss to her belly, right above where her belly button was.

"You dressed," he said, and he looked up at her. She couldn't help but touch his face. Tracing the harsh lines of his cheekbones, and running over the stubble that covered his chin. He sounded disappointed and she grinned, looking down at him, clad only in his boxers.

"My cousin will be here in a couple of hours to open the store, and I rather she didn't see me half naked." He pouted, sending thrills to Arndis' heart. She obliged when he pulled her hips downwards, so she sat on his lap. She could feel his warmth radiating against her back, as well as something hard poking her thigh, which she thought of with a smile, but focused her attention on what he was working on. The book was open to a late page, looking to be about ¾ of the way through the entire book. The words printed there, she couldn't read, but the picture that accompanied them was of a swirling black vortex.

Loki gestured to the picture. "That is how I'll get home." She felt his hot breath against her cheek as he watched her. She felt something like despair claw at her breast but she shook it off, opting to ask questions.

"To Asgard? Right?" She chewed her lip as she tried to recall everything she had ever learned about that mythical place. She knew there was some sort of cross-dimensional bridge thing, but not much else. "Why are you even here?" she asked, quietly.

He sighed, and she could feel it through her back. She lifted one of his hands into her own, and started tracing patterns into it, wanting to give herself something other than the thought of him leaving to focus on, and to relax him. "I'm being punished." She turned to look at him over her shoulder and she read the weariness on his features.

She knew better than to ask for what, as there was probably a long list of crimes he committed. Even though she knew this, it didn't scare her. "An odd punishment," she commented instead, waiting for him to elaborate.

"After my attack on New York failed, Thor took me back to Asgard to deal with me, or I should say, to have Odin deal with me." Arndis cringed at the dead tone of his voice. That coupled with what she already had read about his strained relationship with his father figure, was enough to put her on edge. "He thought to punish me like he did Thor, teaching me _humility_ and _compassion_." The last few words were said with venom, and distaste.

"So he sent you here…to a small town?"

Loki shook his head. "No, Odin knows not where he sets us down, just that we are on Midgard somewhere. This time will not work though." He chuckled, the dark sound sending shivers up her back. "He took my weapon, like he did Thor, but he couldn't remove my magic. I'm not as helpless as my _brother_ was. I do not have to depend on mortals."

Arndis couldn't help but cringe at the tone he used to describe the people of earth. She wondered where she fit into his distaste for them, but didn't want to venture down that road at the moment. He didn't seem to think anything of what he said, as he started to twirl her hair between his fingers, as if they were talking about the weather. She looked at the picture of the vortex again and swallowed. "And this will take you home? You know where to find it?"

Loki sighed once again, "No. It isn't to be found. It is to be made. There are lots of passageways into Asgard, but this one has to be created."

She swallowed again, and asked, "And can you make this?"

He shook his head, and she felt relief pour through her, but felt guilty about that. "Not yet, I need to find other artifacts apparently scattered around Midgard, and I need to be able to harness more magic…" She was silent and he continued, "But rest assured, I will leave this place, and all the puny mortals behind." She inhaled deeply, feeling the sting of his words. She stood from his lap, and only then did he seem to realise the possible problem with what he had said.

"Arndis, I don't mean you…Of course I'd bring-" he started to say, but she cut him off harshly, her voice cold.

"Don't, Loki. Just don't." She wiped the tears from her eyes once, and forced her eyes to dry. "Don't make promises I know you won't keep." She bit her bottom lip hard for a moment, hard enough to draw blood. "I'm going home. Get your things picked up before Beth gets here." Arndis walked away, without looking back, not even when he called her name, his voice growing angrier with every time he called.


End file.
